By Arnold W. Drucker
In my role as Ranking Member of the Legislature’s Budget Review committee, I am more focused than ever on closely scrutinizing County spending to ensure that Nassau County residents’ tax dollars are being utilized as wisely and efficiently as possible.
Nassau County is drafting its Fiscal Year 2026 operating budget at a time of economic volatility and uncertainty unlike any we have witnessed in a generation. It is likely we will need to cut wasteful spending to achieve a balance that preserves key services without raising taxes.
I have long believed that the County’s exorbitant use of outside counsel would be a prime target for such savings – and the fact that Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman and his administration has tripled expenditures there in just three years sends up undeniable red flags.
Under Blakeman, outside counsel expenditures have increased from $6,095,071 in 2022, to $9,012,173 in Fiscal Year 2023, and a staggering $20 million-plus in 2024 – with no signs of slowing down in 2025.
Throughout my tenure as a Nassau County Legislator, I have consistently been frustrated with the disproportionate reliance upon outside counsel, especially when full-time members of the County Attorney’s office should be more than qualified to defend the County’s interests. The Blakeman administration has taken it to a new level – evident by the $2,395 per hour charged by counsel in some of the most egregious cases.
Some recent examples are especially galling. Consider how, on July 14, Nassau County’s Republican Legislative Majority authorized an additional $3.2 million in spending for outside legal counsel to defend county fee practices that courts have already ruled illegal or unconstitutional. This issue could be addressed by bringing the fee structure into compliance with the law, which would allow for those millions to be put toward refunding taxpayers who were unlawfully overcharged. That is why Democratic legislators voted unanimously against the contract and have filed legislation to recalibrate and reduce County fees to match the services being provided.
In May, the Blakeman administration and the Republican Majority authorized another $1.7 million for outside counsel – this time for the County to defend itself from a lawsuit brought by Newsday alleging that the administration retaliated against the publication for coverage it deemed critical by yanking approximately $200,000 in annual legal notices. Again, Legislative Democrats said no to misguided spending on an issue that was entirely of the administration’s own creation.
In many cases, the Blakeman administration and the Nassau GOP have reaped significant campaign contributions from firms they have farmed work out to – and on several occasions, they have forked over millions of taxpayer dollars to entities closely connected to the Trump administration.
Let me be clear – I am not opposed to the use of outside counsel in narrow, tailored cases where a firm’s expertise is essential for defending the interests of County taxpayers or where a valid conflict of interest exists. However, what we are witnessing under the Blakeman administration is an abuse of taxpayer dollars that demands strong corrective action – especially when future budgets are expected to be exceedingly tight.
The County Executive must no longer neglect staffing at the County Attorney’s office, which has dwindled to just 61 attorneys, according to recent published reports. Diversifying and expanding the talent pool will equip the County to handle more cases, ultimately delivering structural savings for taxpayers. Additionally, the County must comply closely with any findings from the Nassau Interim Finance Agency’s (NIFA) well-justified audit of outside counsel spending by the Blakeman administration.
Our constituents work incredibly hard to live, work and raise their families here in Nassau County, and we have a duty to oversee their money vigilantly. A critical first step is putting an end to the Blakeman administration’s politically motivated waste of taxpayer dollars that would be better applied toward preserving key County services.
Arnold W. Drucker is the Deputy Minority Leader of the Nassau County Legislature and represents District 16, which upon reapportionment encompasses Plainview, Syosset, Old Bethpage, Woodbury, Brookville, Old Westbury, Farmingdale, Hicksville and Jericho.